'Mandela' Theatrical Trailer: Idris Elba's Biggest Challenge Yet

Idris Elba has played some great characters in his acting career, but none more important, pertinent and challenging that than of Nelson Mandela in Mandela, which has today been handed a fantastic theatrical trailer. Take a look at Elba in action below.

Click here for the Mandela theatrical trailer

Mandela sees Elba stretch his vocal chords into different shapes once again, this time with a South African accent, which, judging by the trailer, is right on the Rand. His role as Stringer Bell in HBO’s hit crime drama The Wire endeared him to an American audience, many of which weren’t aware he was an English native, born in Hackey, London no less.

South African’s were distracted from the current state of Mandela’s health yesterday (July 19) as the legendary leader celebrated his 95th birthday – a miraculous feat considering the context of his life. His daughter Zindzi, who gifted him a collage of family photos, said "Tata (our father) is making this remarkable progress and we look forward to having him back home soon." (The Guardian)

President Jacob Zuma paid a visit, reporting afterwards: "He continues to respond positively to treatment and we are encouraged by that progress being made. When I visited him today, I found him really stable and I was able to say 'happy birthday' and he was able to smile."

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom gets a limited release on November 29th, while English audiences will have to wait until January 3rd to see their native as the South African icon. We at Contact Music want to wish Nelson Mandela a full and healthy recovery and hope he gets the chance to see his film.